Cut a Cantaloupe
Cutting a cantaloupe is not especially difficult, but there are a few precautions you should take that you might not know about. Keep reading to learn more.
Contents
Steps
Removing the Rind
- Wash the outside of the cantaloupe. Fill a large bowl or clean sink with warm, soapy water and dip the melon inside. Scrub well with a vegetable brush, then rinse well with cool, running water to remove all traces of soap.
- Cantaloupe rind can carry Salmonella, so you need to handle this fruit carefully to prevent accidental ingestion of this bacteria.
- The outer rind needs to be rinsed thoroughly if you use soapy water. Soap residue presents its own health dangerous if it is not removed before food preparation. Gently scrub the rind with your fingers or the vegetable brush as you rinse it to remove all traces of soap.
- Make sure that the cutting surface is also clean before proceeding. Wipe it down with warm, soapy water, rinse with a clean rag soaked in clean water, and dry with clean paper towels.
- Slice off a portion of the two stem ends. Hold the cantaloupe steady on its side with one hand. With a sharp kitchen knife in your other hand, trim off a thin sliver of the stem end on each side, revealing circles of orange flesh roughly 4 inches (10 cm) or so in diameter.
- Make sure that the two stem ends are pointing to the sides as you do this. The melon should be horizontal.
- Slice the ends off by cutting in a vertical line.
- Cutting off a portion of each end will make it easier for you to keep the melon steady for the remaining part of the process. Do not cut away too much, though, or else you will lose more melon than you have to.
- Cut the rind away in thin strips. Stand the cantaloupe on one of its cut, flat sides and use a knife to slice off thin strips of the rind, working from top to bottom and around the entire perimeter of the melon.
- Removing the rind completely further reduces the risk of transferring Salmonella to the flesh of the cantaloupe, thereby reducing the risk of infection. As such, this method is the recommended one.
- You should only remove the rind and very little of the orange flesh. If you remove too much of the flesh, you will lose more cantaloupe than you need to.
- If some of the green inner rind is left behind as you slice, do not worry. These spots can be removed in a later step.
- Note that the rind is too thick for a vegetable peeler to slice through. You will need to use a knife.
- Trim off any remaining green patches. Examine your peeled cantaloupe. Take your kitchen knife and slice off any spots of green that were left behind from the rind.
- When done, the cantaloupe should be smooth, glossy, and completely orange all the way around.
- At this point, it is not a bad idea to quickly rinse the exposed flesh under cool, running water to rinse of any bacteria that may have gotten onto the flesh as you cut through the rind. You should also rinse your knife before continuing on.
Slicing and Dicing the Melon
- Cut the cantaloupe in half. Stand the melon on one of its cut, flat sides. Use a sharp knife to cut it in half lengthwise, clean through from cut end to cut end.
- Keep the cantaloupe steady with your non-dominant hand, but be careful to avoid accidentally slicing your fingers as you cut the melon.
- Scoop out the seeds with a spoon. Place each half seed-side up. Use a heavy metal spoon to dig out all the seeds and pulp.
- You should be able to dig out the seeds and pulp without cutting them away with a knife, but the sturdiness of a metal spoon will work more effectively than the flimsiness of a plastic spoon.
- Discard the seeds and pulp. Do not save them.
- Cut each half into quarters. Make another lengthwise cut in each melon half, separating the cantaloupe into quarters.
- It might be easier if you turn the cantaloupe halves so that the flat side faces the counter. Doing so will prevent the melon from rocking back and forth as you cut it.
- Slice each quarter into eighths. Take each quarter and cut it in half lengthwise one final time. If you want to serve the cantaloupe in slices, stop here.
- Flip the quarter onto a flat side before you begin cutting to make the process easier.
- Cut each slice into chunks, if desired. Use your knife to chop each slice of cantaloupe into bite-size pieces.
- You will usually get around six to eight pieces of fruit from each slice, but the result will vary depending on how big or small you make the pieces.
Alternate Cutting Method
- Wash the cantaloupe well. Fill a clean sink or basin with warm, soapy water. Dunk the melon in the water and scrub well with a vegetable brush. Rinse thoroughly with cool, running water when done.
- You will need to keep the rind intact for this method. While this does slightly increase your risk of Salmonella infection, if you wash the cantaloupe well before proceeding, the risk does go down.
- The outer rind needs to be rinsed thoroughly if you use soapy water. Soap residue presents its own health dangerous if it is not removed before food preparation.
- Make sure that the cutting surface is also clean before proceeding. Wipe it down with warm, soapy water, rinse with a clean rag soaked in clean water, and dry with clean paper towels.
- Cut the cantaloupe in half. Hold the melon steady with one hand. Slice it lengthwise, from stem end to stem end, clean in half.
- Make sure that the knife you use is sharp. A sharp knife will cut more cleanly, thereby reducing the risk of contaminating the inner flesh with bacteria from the outer rind.
- Dig out the seeds with a spoon. Use a sturdy metal spoon to scoop out the seeds and pulp inside each cantaloupe half.
- You should be able to dig out the seeds and pulp without cutting them away with a knife, but the sturdiness of a metal spoon will work more effectively than the flimsiness of a plastic spoon.
- Discard the seeds and pulp. Do not save them.
- Cut each half into quarters. Place each half with the cut side facing up. Make another lengthwise cut to divide each half in half, separating the melon as a whole into quarters.
- It might be easier if you turn the cantaloupe halves so that the flat side faces the counter. Doing so will prevent the melon from rocking back and forth as you cut it.
- Slice each quarter into eighths. Take each quarter and cut it in half lengthwise one final time to form manageable slices.
- Flip the quarter onto a flat side before you begin cutting to make the process easier.
- Mark out even pieces in each slice. Cut six to eight evenly sized pieces in each slice, but only cut to the rind. Do not cut through the rind.
- If you cut completely through the rind, you will need to remove the rind from each small piece individually after it is cut. This can be time consuming and difficult.
- Carefully in between the peel and the flesh to separate the pieces. Flatten each slice out. Run the knife just above the rind, cutting the chunks of cantaloupe off as you do it.
- With the flesh already separated, you should have no trouble bending the slice down so that the rind lies flat against your cutting surface. In order to cut the pieces off evenly, the slice must lie flat. If it still curves upward, you are more likely to turn the knife incorrectly as you cut, losing more of the flesh or keeping more of the rind than you want.
- With the slice flattened, you should be able to drag the knife across the slice horizontally.
- Place the chunks of orange cantaloupe flesh in a bowl and discard the rinds.
- Finished!
Tips
- A ripe cantaloupe should have a sweet smell with musky undertones. It should also feel heavy, and the stem end should "give" or "yield" a little when you apply gentle pressure with your thumb.
- Unripe cantaloupe can sit out at room temperature for 2 days. Ripe cantaloupe can be refrigerated for 5 days. Cut wedges of cantaloupe can be covered and refrigerated for 3 days, and cube of cantaloupe can stay covered and refrigerated for 1 to 2 days.
Warnings
- Symptoms associated with Salmonella infection include abdominal cramps, diarrhea, nausea, vomiting, and fever.
- Cantaloupe and other netted melons grown on the ground and are exposed to the pathogens found in non-composted fertilizer. Since this fruit is non-acidic, it readily fosters the growth of pathogens, and cantaloupes have been known to become contaminated with Salmonella.
Things You'll Need
- Bowl or basin
- Soap
- Water
- Clean paper towels
- Sharp kitchen knife
- Cutting board
- Sturdy metal spoon
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